Craft PB Grand Tour SS Jersey

For £65 (or closer to £50 at the time of writing) the Craft Grand Tour jersey is a pretty nice bit of kit. The collection of features and fit deliver a product you'll be as happy with on a six-hour sportive as you would be on a quick chaingang or summer-evening crit – a lightweight jersey with just a few sizing caveats.

First off, this jersey is light – at 156g in Medium there's not much to it. The front and back panels are made from a semi-translucent material that protects modesty when against the skin, yet allows dollops of air through at speed. Across the shoulders and sides there's more traditional lightweight jersey Lycra, brought together with a pretty robust zip that feels like it'll last the life of the garment.

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The Medium is a good fit around a 37in chest, but the arms do come up a bit short – so if you're more Gollum than Goliath and want a sharp mid-bicep tan-line this might not work for you. They were long enough to pair with some arm warmers on cool mornings, but after an hour or so some re-adjustment was needed to avoid the Nora Batty support-hose look.

Craft's sizing chart says with a 94cm chest and 84cm waist I'm a Small – possibly explaining the less-than-snug chest fit in a Medium, but a Small would probably mean even shorter arms. The chest panels did flap a bit when in the drops on fast descents – it's not sprayed-on, but then I'm no Atlas (as the missus often laments). Again, if you followed the sizing guide to the letter it would be a pretty snug garment, so maybe try one on or buy from an outlet who do free returns.

The stiffness of the zip (definitely two-handed operation) acts to hold the collar proud of your neck, meaning there was a few fingers' worth of gap for breeze to find its way down. Under the arms the fabric is borderline string-vest, it's so breathable. The rear hem is a very grippy elasticated job.

The three pockets aren't the deepest at 6in, but hold a thin gilet or warmers no problem. The centre one has a zipped front that will take a medium-size phone in a case no problem. The open pocket in the centre has a small headphone/earpiece hole at bottom right (looking at the rear) for those of you needing to get your fix of The Archers Omnibus, or instructions from the DS that the cake stop is only two miles away so it's time to get on the front lest ye be 10th in the clacky-shoe coffee queue.

Style-wise, the Grand Tour isn't a bad looker, with Craft logos down the side panels and across the chest. The collar might not win everyone over with its deep, almost V-neck look, but when you're out on the bike it feels fine and – as already mentioned – does a good job of directing a bit of air about the place.

Check out our buyer's guide to summer jerseys, from £4.99, here

This jersey is breezy – you should be able to take on any UK midsummer all-day effort without issue. The pockets can take a gilet to layer up as needed, but being so lightweight if you loaded it down with gels, tools, pump and warmers it would get pretty full.

Inside, only one of the seams is flatlocked, across the back, but it's really not an issue – the fabric is so soft and light that the seams aren't evident.

Over a month of rides earlier in the season the Grand Tour was a bit of kit I looked forward to pulling on. Worn with a gilet, the previously-reviewed Lusso Wind Block T-shirt and a pair of arm warmers, it was good for single-digit morning starts that got up into the teens, and for a few all-out TT sessions it was perfect on its own. And for a full Craft outfit you could pair it with the Puncheur Bib Shorts we reviewed recently.

At £65 the Grand Tour is a good buy; at closer to £50 it's a very good deal. Just be aware of the shorter arms/fit.

Verdict

Delivers good hot-weather performance for a reasonable price